Blaze of Winter: A Loveswept Contemporary Romance (30 page)

“Glad you came down, Avery,” Luke Bedwin said, coming out from behind the counter at Star Harbor Hardware after she’d described exactly what she was looking for. “I’ve got just what you need.”

“Thanks, Luke,” she said. “Could you, ah …”

“Show you where I keep the bulbs? Why, I’d be glad to.” He motioned for her to follow him. As they began to walk down the main aisle of the store, Avery glanced around. Though the store was large, every conceivable space had been put to use. Everywhere she looked there were keys, tools, scissors, plywood, nails, plugs, and any number of assorted knickknacks one might find in a hardware store. There was so much stuff packed floor to ceiling that the narrow shelves lining the aisles seemed as though they might topple over at any minute. Those things had to be bolted in place, right? More goods were displayed on top of the long shelves. Rakes, garden hoses, and shovels.

Luke turned down one of the narrow aisles and stopped about halfway down, right in front of a huge display of light bulbs. Looking directly up, she realized that there was a sizeable display of harvesting scythes hanging right over her head, knife sides down, their wickedly sharp blades gleaming as they swayed slowly back and forth.

“Ah, Luke,” she said nervously.

“Don’t worry about the stuff on the ceiling,” he said, as if reading her mind. “I strung those up myself. They’re not going anywhere. At least, not until next fall when I take ’em down.”

Avery swallowed and tried as subtly as possible to shift half a foot to the right. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Luke’s tying abilities, just that she trusted her instinct for self-preservation more. Thankfully, Luke had found the right kind of light bulbs and was examining the packaging.

“Here, now, I think you’ll want the sixty-watt incandescent. Wiring’s old in that building, and you said this was for where? The pantry? So no need to go higher. You just want the one?” he asked, handing her the cardboard box.

“Two, please,” Avery said, trying not to blush as she remembered Theo’s words.

“You got it,” he said, pulling down another. “Last two. Lucky,” Luke added, walking back to the front of the store.

“Great, thanks!” Avery said. “One less thing I have to worry about.”

Luke gave her a sympathetic look over his shoulder. “Heard about the scuffle at Kate’s house this morning. You okay?”

Avery sighed, no longer surprised that everyone in town knew her business. There was no use in asking Luke where he’d heard the news. It would be some convoluted path of gossip, she was sure of it. “I’m fine. Just a bit shaken up. And troubled. I still haven’t spoken with my old client, so I’m not sure how she found me.”

“As long as you weren’t hurt,” he said, circling back behind the counter.

She shook her head. “I’m fine. So tell me how much I owe you for these bulbs.”

“On the house.”

“No way. I have to pay you. Kate will kill me.”

He gave her a careful, even look. “You tell Kate I hope she gets better real soon. And that I hope she likes the flowers I brought her.”

Avery blinked. And then realized what she hadn’t seen the entire time she’d been living in this town.

Luke Bedwin was in love with her aunt.

There it was, as plain as day, written all over his face. He loved Kate. More than that, he’d be perfect for her. His calm, collected demeanor. His cheeky sense of humor. And his absolute loyalty. He’d helped Kate out countless times at the Inn. But why hadn’t anyone said anything to her? Did Kate even know? Her aunt was so independent, it had probably never crossed her mind that she’d need anyone. Or that anyone would need her.

Avery needed to figure out how her aunt felt about Luke, and if Kate liked him, she would do her best to get them together. Maybe Kate just required a little push in the right direction. “I will,” she vowed. “You can count on it.”

CHAPTER 25

On Thursday morning, Avery went to Cape Cod Hospital just after breakfast. Julie Kensington and the CCH doctors had agreed that she could take Kate home that day. But before leaving the hospital, Avery went to check on another patient: Wanda MacGreeley.

Knocking softly on the door to Wanda’s room, she mentally prepared herself for the conversation. “Wanda?” she called.

“I’m here, Ms. Newbridge,” a soft voice responded.

Avery stepped into the clean, white chamber. Looking much better than she had two days before, Wanda was sitting upright in the hospital bed reading a magazine. With her dark hair pushed back from her smooth skin, the girl seemed completely fine. But Avery knew that Wanda’s road to recovery would be a long, hard one. “May I?” Avery asked, motioning to the small chair in the corner.

Wanda nodded and set the magazine down.

“Wanda,” Avery began, not exactly sure how to proceed. “They’re releasing you tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Wanda said. There was an uncomfortable silence. She might as well dive right in.

“You know that your parents are very worried about you?”

“I know,” she said, dipping her head. “They came to visit. They’re staying in a motel nearby with the baby.” Avery didn’t need to torture the poor girl by telling her that she and Yvonne had been worried sick, too. Still, she needed some answers.

Avery crossed her hands in her lap, adopting as nonthreatening a pose as she could. “So, the first thing I need to ask is how you found Star Harbor. I don’t remember it coming up in any of the discussions we had, either in our individual or our group sessions.”

“I—I listened in on one of your phone calls,” Wanda said guiltily. “Heard you mention that you wanted to help someone out—your aunt, I think.”

Wanda must have overheard one of her conversations with Emma.

“How did you get here?”

“Hitched.”

“Where did you stay, exactly?”

“Here and there. I’d heard you mention an inn, so I tried that place first. I slept inside one night, and then in the cellar for a few more, but I almost got caught breaking into the Inn, so I ran away. I slept in a barn for a few nights. Another night in an empty farmhouse. By then I was starting to get strung out and I hadn’t eaten in a while.”

Well, at least that explained the mystery of the shifting furniture and the missing supplies. “So you broke into Kate’s, too,” Avery said. “How’d you know which house it was?”

“I followed you.” Obviously, the girl had made a conscious decision not to approach Avery after coming to Star Harbor to find her. Thinking about Wanda out in the freezing cold, alone and frightened, made her unbearably sad.

“Wanda, why didn’t you come to me?”

“I was afraid you’d turn me in.”

Avery sighed. “I would have helped you.”

“By turning me in.”

Avery pressed her lips together. She’d be wise to back off if she wanted to get more answers out of the girl. One of the most frustrating things about Wanda was her sometimes defiant attitude. “Okay, that explains the how,” Avery said, switching tacks. “But it doesn’t explain the why. Why did you come to Star Harbor? You were in a good place in Boston. You
had your family and your son, Brayden. You even had a job you liked lined up for after your treatment was completed. And Rick was there.” Wanda’s boyfriend and Brayden’s father. “So what happened?”

Wanda swallowed hard and looked away. Avery had obviously struck a chord. When Wanda started speaking, her voice was soft. “I started using again before I left Back Bay. Rick and my parents didn’t know. I know the other social workers didn’t, either, but I couldn’t hide it for long.” The girl blinked. “I didn’t want to admit that I’d failed. I knew they’d kick me out of the program the second they did a drug test.”

“Wanda, you had so many people to turn to. So many people who love you.”

“But after you left, Ms. Newbridge, I just couldn’t connect with any of the other social workers. No one cared about me like you did.”

Avery managed to keep her disappointed reaction in check. Wanda shouldn’t be deflecting the blame, but she was here to help. When she spoke, her voice was even. “In group therapy, we talked a lot about your triggers. Can you pinpoint one of those triggers for me? Help me to understand why you started using again?”

“Change, maybe. I don’t know,” Wanda said, looking away. “Maybe if you had been there …”

She couldn’t keep herself in check a second time. “Wanda, no. You are responsible for your own actions. You’re a strong woman. If you had been serious about your recovery, you would have sought help before you started using again, not after.”

“See? This is what I’m talking about,” Wanda said, gesticulating broadly. “You don’t put up with my crap. That’s really why I came here. ’Cause I thought you’d be able to help me. I was scared. I broke so many rules at Back Bay, I know they won’t let me back in. So I came here. I didn’t know what else to do!”

Avery pursed her lips together. Wanda was still in denial; if the girl had wanted to see her so badly, why hadn’t she done so? “The sooner you stop lying to yourself, Wanda, the sooner you’ll get clean.” She rose to leave.

“I don’t know if I can. As soon as I got to Star Harbor, the first thing I did was to try to score drugs. I didn’t even try to find you like I’d planned,” she said, sadly. “I just got high. Then I ran out of money.”

Slowly, Avery turned back. Hearing Wanda admit to her shortcomings was tough, but she owed it to her to help. Owed it to herself. She couldn’t save everyone, that much she knew. But she could try to save Wanda.

“Please,” Wanda said, suddenly. “Please help me. I don’t want it anymore. I crashed hard. Those uppers almost killed me. I was paranoid. Crazy. I don’t know what to do.”

“Well, what would you suggest?”

“I have to go back to a program, right?”

Avery nodded. “Yes.”

“Is there one here that I could do?”

“You’d be away from your parents, your son, and Rick. Is that what you want?”

The girl set her mouth in a determined line. “Yeah. I want to get clean. And I need to do it on my own. I—I found out I’m pregnant again. I don’t want this baby to go through what Brayden’s gone through.”

Avery was stunned. “Do the doctors know?”

Wanda nodded. “Yeah. The baby’s okay. It’s Rick’s. When he finds out I’m pregnant and that I’ve been using, he’s going to kill me.”

“He might not be happy about it, but that’s only because he cares about you. He’s a good man, and I think that telling him could help. If you’re really determined to go back to a program, I’ll see what I can arrange.” Wanda looked hopeful, but Avery held up her hand to indicate that she wasn’t finished. “I don’t want you to get your hopes up about Brayden, though. The court
probably won’t award you custody since you failed out of Back Bay, but at least he’s in a good home with your folks. And another thing to consider is that everything is a trade-off; you’ll be away from some bad influences, but you’ll also be away from some good ones. I think your family can and should be helping you through this, but that’s up to you. That being said, there’s a live-in treatment center in Falmouth called the Family and Children Services, or FFCS. That’s where you could probably go.”

“Will you be there, too?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “But the important thing is that you’d be in a good place, getting the help that you need.”

“Okay. What would I need to do?”

“I’ll find out. In the meantime, keep getting rest. The best thing for you right now is to be healthy and ready for what comes next. For you, and for your baby.” Avery walked to the door. “I’ll be back soon to check up on you.”

“Ms. Newbridge, wait. I have one more thing to tell you.”

She turned back. “What is it?”

“I-I took some stuff from the Inn’s cellar.”

“What kind of stuff?”

“Drugs … and a book. They were in my backpack, but I don’t know where the bag is.”

“Where did you get the drugs?” Avery asked, even though she already thought she knew.

“From behind a weird wall. There was some kind of latch. I didn’t even know what I was doing, but I got into a damp room. It was so dark, but I was used to it. I wasn’t down there for that long. I saw the drugs. I knew what they were, and knew you couldn’t be involved, Ms. Newbridge. I mean, you’re my counselor, not a dealer. Then there were lights and noises and I just grabbed whatever I could. I thought it might help somehow. I don’t know.” She shook her head. “Anyway, I shoved the stuff into my bag, and got out of there fast.”

“You were right to run. I think the people who stored stuff in the Inn’s cellar are really dangerous.” She’d have to tell Cole, as soon as she was able. “What’d you do with the things you took?”

“I used the drugs,” Wanda said, clearly ashamed.

“That’s in the past. What about the book?”

“I don’t know what was in it, or where it is. Like I said, I shoved it in my bag.” Wanda looked up at her carefully. “You’re not in trouble, are you?”

Avery shook her head. “No. I’m not in trouble, Wanda. You were right that the drugs weren’t mine. The police caught the drug dealers, and when we find your backpack, I’ll get the book to the right people. And I won’t tell them that you used any of the drugs, all right?”

Wanda nodded gratefully. “Ms. Newbridge?”

“Yes, Wanda?”

“I just wanted to tell you that I’m sorry about—about everything.”

Wanda had never before apologized to her. Not for her actions or her words. Maybe she’d turned a corner. Only time would tell whether she was on the path to sobriety, though. “I appreciate that, Wanda. I appreciate that a lot. I’ll be back soon so we can talk about this some more.”